Planned Parenthood of Los Angeles has threatened legal action against a UCLA student for her role in videos posted online that apparently show a Planned Parenthood employee violating the organization’s policies.
Lila Rose, a second-year political science student, posed as a 15-year-old who had gotten pregnant by her 23-year-old boyfriend and without telling employees, videotaped the visit, which Planned Parenthood officials say is illegal under the California Invasion of Privacy Act.
Kathy Kneer, president of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, said Rose and a man came into a Planned Parenthood facility in Los Angeles requesting information about an abortion.
In the video she recorded while on that visit, one employee is heard suggesting that Rose pretend to be at least 16 so the situation would not have to be reported.
“If you’re 15, we have to report it. If you’re not, if you’re older, we don’t,” the employee said in the video.
Kneer said that under California law, health professionals must report suspected cases of child abuse. Sexual contact with a child under 16, even if it is consensual, is illegal and must be reported.
Rose then proceeded to post the footage from her visit on YouTube, which prompted Planned Parenthood to send her a cease-and-desist letter asking her to pull the videos off the Internet and turn the original copies over to the organization.
While Kneer did not defend her employee’s actions, she did say Rose broke the law by recording her interactions with staffers without their knowledge.
“Our employees still violated our policies. … Their actions were unacceptable, and we took immediate action,” Kneer said.
Under the California Invasion of Privacy Act, confidential conversations may not be recorded unless all parties are aware of and consent to the recording.
The cease-and-desist letter said Rose’s footage was “apparently obtained through false pretenses and unlawfully, as these conversations were surreptitiously recorded without the knowledge and consent” of employees.
It goes on to request that Rose agree by today to remove the videos from YouTube and give the original copies to Planned Parenthood and threatens legal action if Rose does not comply.
Rose said she has removed the videos from YouTube on the advice of her lawyers but would not comment on the legality of the recordings.
If Rose complies with Planned Parenthood’s requests, the organization likely will not pursue the situation further, Kneer said.
Rose said she is primarily concerned with exposing what she called illegal actions on the part of Planned Parenthood.
“They’re covering up the sexual abuse of young girls, and they don’t report the predators,” she said, adding that she visited another Planned Parenthood facility in Los Angeles and encountered similar problems.
“Planned Parenthood is coming after me and trying to cover up what I discovered. … They’re kind of going after the whistle-blower.”
But Kneer said she believes Rose is acting on a different set of principles.
“She clearly has an agenda. From a broader public perspective she means well, but it’s misguided,” Kneer said.
“We’re really dedicated to making sure each individual has all the information to make the decision that’s best for them. Lila’s objective is to make sure those services aren’t available.”
Rose, who also writes for the student pro-life publication The Advocate, is set to appear on The O’Reilly Factor on Fox News tonight to discuss the situation.